The Pros And Cons To Clean Energy Sources

With 2015 being the hottest year on record, a debate among us all is climate change and what we can do to help slow down the process. The biggest cause of this is said to be our reliance on fossil fuels as the main energy source. As technology advances and our ability to use clean energy sources becomes more attainable, people begin to wonder what the different pros and cons are for these difference sources. Although they may not pollute the air with CO2 emissions, they do have other negative environmental impacts.

Pros:

With renewable energy, we could expect to see more stability in our energy prices. This is because the cost would come simply from the cost to set up the infrastructure of the energy source. With the added industry of renewable energy sources, this would create new jobs and aid the country in growth and job creation. Other than that these sources will constantly be producing energy giving it a lot of reliability. Above all else, clean energy sources are low on greenhouse gas emissions which will help in slowing down climate change.

Cons:

The biggest issues with renewable energy is its vulnerability to both weather and climate instances. With the high cost it requires to manufacture the technology, this is a huge red flag as the system could be damaged and require a lot of capital to fix. Along with that, it is difficult to produce the energy in large quantities unlike fossil fuels. Along with that, a large area is required for things like solar panels and wind turbines to be set up, and they are not even available in all areas.

There are currently 6 different renewable energy sources available for us. Each of these 6 has its different ups and downs. We have listed them below

Solar:

Capturing the suns heat on solar cells to convert that energy into electricity.

Pro: Unlimited amount of supply and it causes no pollution to the atmosphere

Con: It is currently not cheap enough compared to other sources and depends on the amount of sunlight. Also negatively impacts the ecosystem as it kills off anything that lands on its surface

Wind:

Wind spins turbines which transfer the energy into electricity

Pro: Cheap to build and can occupy open farm lands, producing no air pollution.

Con: Needs a lot of land and constant wind to be effective. Also has an impact on the ecosystem by killing off birds with the spinning turbines.

Tidal

Hydroelectric

Biomass

Geothermal

In the end, it is probably best to use a mixture of them all. Choosing just one would be a mistake for both the environment and the world economy. Depending on one energy source is never a good idea, as we have learned from history.